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Sullivan's bycatch bill reaches its first Senate committee test
Sullivan's bycatch bill gets its first committee test Wednesday. It mandates gear changes and monitoring, but doesn't ban trawling or set catch caps.

Alaska sets 25 online-only permits for Raspberry Island cow elk
Twenty-five Raspberry Island elk permits go out online Sept. 24, first come first served. Sixteen more go only to whoever shows up in two Kodiak villages.

Kodiak's silver limit drops as its king limit rises
Kodiak's silver salmon limit dropped to one a day this week, while the king limit rose back to two after a spring of tight restrictions.

The state's analysis of Alaska's first crab hatchery says it would add little
Alaska's first crab hatchery wants a permit. The state's own analysis says the crab it releases would likely make no measurable difference to the fishery.

Afognak Native Corporation buys majority stake in Weaver Bros. trucking companies
Weaver Bros. has hauled freight in Alaska since 1946. Its new majority owner is a Kodiak village corporation whose people lost their village in 1964.

Alaska has $272 million to change rural health care. The requests reached $2.5 billion.
Alaska has 217 preliminary rural health awards worth about $209 million — enough to replace equipment and add services, but not to replace Medicaid coverage.

Kodiak staff urge keeping Beaver Lake land as the borough hunts for housing sites
Kodiak's manager wants to open Beaver Lake land to housing. The borough's own planning staff say keep it — and the commission said no in 2019.

Kodiak's only bid to replace a key sewage station came in at twice the estimate
The only bid to replace the pump station handling 80% of Kodiak's sewage came in at $16.3 million — more than double the city's estimate of $7.2 million.

Coast Guard awards $315 million for Kodiak fuel pier, and comment on the review closes Sept. 16
The Coast Guard has awarded $315 million to Tutor Perini for a new fuel pier and major cutter mooring at Base Kodiak, competed with four offers and running to 2030. The draft environmental review of the project, including demolition of the existing pier, takes public comment only through Sept. 16.

Koniag subsidiaries now staff federal offices in Virginia and Oklahoma
Koniag subsidiaries are staffing federal back offices in Virginia and Oklahoma, including the office that processes Native patients' outside medical bills.

Managers want to double a halibut cap. Their own analysis warns against it.
Federal managers want to roughly double a halibut vessel cap in the Bering Sea, though their own analysis says it helps a few big boats at the fleet's expense.

Kodiak Island Borough Assembly to vote on snow contract that drew a single bid
Only one contractor bid on Kodiak's snow removal after the school district opted to plow its own lots — a setup one assembly member calls "ridiculous."

Kodiak council moves toward leasing historic Griffin building to two museums
Kodiak City Council rejected a church's bid to buy the historic Griffin building and will instead lease it to two museums for storage and exhibits, though lease terms remain unsigned.

In Kodiak, Sullivan and Peltola agreed on the problems and fought over the fix
Sullivan and Peltola agreed on nearly every fisheries problem in Kodiak and split on what fixing one looks like: laws passed, or fish in the river.

Koniag subsidiaries won $58.6 million to run IT for the agency that runs 8(a)
Three Koniag subsidiaries won $58.6 million in two days to run IT for the SBA through the SBA's own preference program. Nobody else bid.

Two oxygen tanks for the aircraft that fly search and rescue from Kodiak
The Coast Guard told competitors they had until Sept. 11 to weigh in on a Kodiak oxygen tank contract. It signed the deal with Airgas on Sept. 9.

Resident accuses Kodiak Island Borough Assembly of illegal poll on remote-meeting rules
A Kodiak resident challenged the borough assembly's survey on remote-meeting rules as violating the Open Meetings Act, though the borough attorney cleared it as preparation for public discussion.

Kodiak assembly weighs $3.85 million grant to replace failing hospital chiller
A failing chiller that supports sterilization at Kodiak's hospital is running at 35 percent, and the borough votes Wednesday on a nearly $4 million replacement.

Federal grant of $500,000 would replace generators on the mountaintop relays that carry Akhiok's internet
A $500,000 federal grant will replace aging generators and batteries at two mountain relays that carry internet to Akhiok, a remote village on Kodiak Island.

Three Kodiak westside sections now open until further notice; 54-hour period ends 6 p.m. Saturday
Three Kodiak sections are open to salmon seining until further notice. The period covering much of the rest of the area closes Saturday evening.

Unimak Bight scallop grounds close tonight with the season's 7,500-pound quota filled
Alaska closed Unimak Bight to commercial scallop fishing for the rest of the 2026/27 season effective Thursday after catch reports showed the 7,500-pound guideline would be met.

Prince William Sound anglers still limited to one king salmon a day
Anglers in most of Prince William Sound are held to one king salmon a day — half the usual — through Sept. 15, under a restriction over low king numbers.

Kodiak posts its election guide in Tagalog for the island's Filipino voters
Kodiak posted its Oct. 6 election guide in English and Tagalog — reflecting the island's Filipino community and a long effort to help those residents vote.

Weather cancels Koniag townhalls in two villages, three weeks before the board vote
High winds canceled Koniag's first two 2026 shareholder townhalls in Akhiok and Old Harbor on Wednesday, replacing them with meal and sign-in gatherings as the proxy deadline approaches Sept. 30.

Kodiak's manager wants to sell lakeside land. Its planners say keep it.
Kodiak's borough manager applied to sell land near Beaver Lake. The borough's own planning staff recommend keeping it, calling the ground too wet to build.

Bronson calls for bottom trawling ban in state waters at Kodiak fisheries debate
Dave Bronson called for banning bottom trawling in Alaska's three-mile state waters, the only gubernatorial candidate to propose the measure at a Kodiak debate.

Gubernatorial candidates split on Board of Fisheries overhaul
Proposals range from expanding the board to nine or eleven members to stricter recusal rules and industry-conflict guidelines.

Coast Guard finds 15-year-old alive on capsized skiff off St. Lawrence Island; two dead
Coast Guard found a 15-year-old alive on a capsized skiff 4 miles east of St. Lawrence Island on Monday; two other boaters from the same vessel were recovered dead.

Kodiak's silver salmon are stacking up at the Buskin, waiting for rain
Kodiak's silver salmon are piling up at the mouth of the Buskin River, waiting for rain to move upstream — with only about 500 counted so far this season.

Kodiak is replacing hospital power switches nobody makes parts for anymore
Kodiak is replacing four 27-year-old power switches at the hospital that no longer have available parts, spending $151,155 on design work before construction begins.

Kenai Peninsula assembly president proposes rewrite of rules for filling assembly vacancies
Kenai Peninsula Assembly President Ryan Tunseth is proposing to rewrite the rules for filling vacant assembly seats, with a public hearing set for Oct. 20.

Four of seven Kodiak Assembly seats are on the Oct. 6 ballot
Four of the seven Kodiak Island Borough Assembly seats are on the Oct. 6 ballot, all elected borough-wide. Early voting runs Sept. 21 to Oct. 5.

An Anchorage firm staffs the State Department's internal watchdog
An Anchorage company owned by the Kodiak regional corporation holds a contract worth up to $75 million to staff the State Department's internal watchdog.

Kodiak district asks school board to weigh closing East Elementary in 2027
Kodiak may close East Elementary in 2027. Five weeks before proposing that, the district asked the state for $5.75 million to renovate the building.

Alaska Supreme Court rules: Officers Must Stop at Unclear Lawyer Requests
Alaska Supreme Court ruled police must stop questioning suspects who make unclear lawyer requests, even after Miranda waivers, reversing a Kodiak murder conviction.

The Coast Guard is repairing a fire-damaged barracks at Kodiak
Repairs begin Tuesday on a fire-damaged 1940s barracks at Coast Guard Base Kodiak. Nothing in the record says when the fire happened or who was displaced.

Kodiak's Assembly can't agree on how often to meet remotely
Kodiak Island Borough Assembly members can't agree on how many meetings a year they may attend remotely, the last open question in a rules rewrite.

Kodiak hospital chiller running at a third of capacity; borough moves to accept $3.85 million to replace it
Kodiak Island Borough Assembly votes Thursday to accept $3.85 million in state funding to replace a failing hospital chiller that is limiting emergency and surgical care on the island.

Kadiak takes a $4.45 million State Department IT contract
An Anchorage company owned by Koniag will run IT support for the State Department bureaus covering the Middle East and South Asia.

Alaska Supreme Court bars Nome from taxing hospital staff housing
The Alaska Supreme Court says Nome cannot tax the building where its hospital houses doctors and nurses, a ruling that reaches every borough in the state.
